Show Notes
This episode is what happens when two people’s loves for venus flytraps, spooky season, and movie musicals collide.
Yes, we’re doing nerdy Halloween horticulture by analyzing the representation of carnivorous plants in the classic musical Little Shop of Horrors—specifically the 1986 movie version. If you haven’t seen the show, don’t worry; we set the stage for you and save any late-story spoilers for the very end. For the most part, we’re interested in one question: based on our knowledge of real-world carnivorous plants, how reasonable were Seymore’s guesses when he first tried to care for Audrey II? This requires, of course, an exploration of Venus flytraps’ habitat and habits, how they reproduce, and of the care they need to thrive in our homes.
The movie does raise one more hypothetical, and I’ll put this in code for our listeners who still need to watch it: that ending. Would it really have worked? We get a buzz out of exploring the idea.
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Credits
Website Design and Illustration by Sophia Alladin
Intro and Outro Music from #Uppbeat (free for Creators!): https://uppbeat.io/t/soundroll/when-my-ukulele-plays
License code: GWOIMMBAS15FG6PH
Citations
Little Shop of Horrors
Oz, F. (Director). (1986). Little shop of horrors. The Geffen Company.
Venus flytrap Overview
Venus flytrap (Dionaea muscipula). (n.d.). iNaturalist. https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/52666-Dionaea-muscipula
Venus flytraps benefit from fires
Venus Flytrap. (n.d.). National Wildlife Federation. https://www.nwf.org/Educational-Resources/Wildlife-Guide/Plants-and-Fungi/Venus-Flytrap
A chemical signal from the flytrap’s prey stimulates the secretion of enzymes.
Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center – the University of Texas at Austin. (n.d.). https://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=dimu4
Overwintering your venus flytrap
Little Shop of Horrors. (2025, January 12). Overwintering Venus flytraps. Littleshopofhorrors.co.uk. https://www.littleshopofhorrors.co.uk/over-wintering-venus-flytraps/
Timestamps
00:39 Introduction
01:35 What’s Growing On: Sean’s Winter Prep
02:20 What’s Growing On: Erin’s Tomatoes and Greenhouse Build
03:10 Sean’s Pumpkin-Deer Showdown
05:48 Water Break
06:00 Setting the Scene: Little Shop of Horrors
07:44 How Carnivorous Plants Eat
11:26 Can a Carnivorous Plant Survive on Human Blood?
12:46 Venus Fly Trap Etymology
15:50 How the Venus Fly Trap Grows
18:35 Audrey II’s Structure vs. Venus Fly Trap Structure
21:39 Taking Care of Audrey II vs. a Venus Fly Trap
32:24 Overwintering Your Venus Fly Trap
34:51 SPOILER WATER BREAK
35:20 Propagating a Venus Fly Trap vs. Audrey II
41:28 Ethical Purchasing of Venus Fly Traps
42:49 Buying Cool Cultivated Varieties
43:33 Can You Kill a Plant with Electrocution?
47:29 Conclusion and Contact Us
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